Today and tomorrow, the Daily Dispatch will highlight bills that have gone under the radar during the first part of New Hampshire’s 2011 legislative session.
In particular, we’ll focus on the state Senate, which meets in session Wednesday to consider more than 34 bills and amendments.
The proposals cover a wide range of issues — from a constitutional amendment giving the governor line item veto authority over the state budget to increasing the allowable size of off-highway recreational vehicles on state trails.
It’s all a part of government, folks.
Charge It
Senate Bill 56 >> This would allow the Department of Revenue Administration to accept tax payments by credit and debit card. Sponsored by Sen. Robert Odell (R-Lempster), SB 56 also would allow the DRA to enact a usage service charge.
The bill’s fiscal note says New Hampshire currently handles some 265,000 checks every two years, at a cost of $592,553 annually. Plus, the note indicates, the state pays about $87,000 annually for armored car services and $18,550 in bank fees. Senate Bill 56 passed the Senate Finance Committee with a unanimous 7-0 vote.
Line Item
CACR 5 >> New Hampshire is one of six states in which the governor does not have line item veto power over the state budget, but CACR 5 sponsor Sen. Chuck Morse (R-Salem) would like to change that.
In short, a line item veto allows a governor to edit a bill line by line. In this case, it would only apply to spending bills, meaning the governor would be able to take some spending provisions out of a budget, while leaving other parts intact. And the “veto” implies that the governor could only take certain provisions out of a budget, but wouldn’t be able to add any in.
The issue has had far more attention at the Congressional level than in Concord over the years. If CACR 5 passes through the Senate and House by a 3/5 margin in each body, it would go before the voters in 2012. The measure passed the Senate Internal Affairs Committee with a 3-0 vote.
Wider Trails
Senate Bill 100 >> Sponsored by Sen. Sharon Carson (R-Londonderry), this would increase the allowable size of off-highway recreational vehicles (OHRVs) on any designated state-owned trail.
The OHRV size limit would increase from 50 to 65 inches in width and from 1,000 pounds to 1,600 pounds in weight. The bill passed unanimously out of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee by a 5-0 vote.
This Daily Dispatch was written by Michael McCord.